An Introduction to Podcasting

Like any other technical term that we hear for the first time, Podcasting also creates a little fear in our mind. Most of us feel that this is something about which only experts should talk. However, if you also have any such misunderstanding regarding Podcasting, you should wash out your brain and kick out such kind of fear. Podcasting is nothing but simply a method of transferring audio files to iPods and other kinds of media players according to the wish of user. The process of downloading audio files takes place automatically. You can listen to the content of these audio files at your convenience later.

Understanding Podcasting
Combining two words makes the word Podcasting. The first one is a digital music player from Apple known as iPod. The second word is broadcasting. You might feel that you need to have an iPod to listen to the prodcasts. But this is not true. You can use several other devices such as MP3 players, Cell Phones, PSPs and PDAs in addition to the iPods to listen to the Podcasts. You may listen to the audio content even directly from your computer. In principle, any device that can download and play media files can be used for the purpose of downloading and listening to Podcasts.

Podcasting is very useful in today’s life style where people have very little time to enjoy. Podcasting lets them listen to their favorite audio programs at leisure by automatically downloading these files from Internet to their medial players. You can listen to your favorite audio show whenever and wherever you want to by syncing to any portable media player.

Podfathers
You must be eager to know the names of the people who have done all the hard work and provided this facility to you. All the credit for Podcasting goes to two persons popularly known as Podfathers. The first is Adam Curry and second software developer Dave Winer. The key program that made Podcasting possible by directly downloading Internet broadcasts automatically to the MP3 and other media player is called ipodder. Adam Curry developed this ipodder.

Podcasting relies on RSS or Really Simple Syndication files. Dave Winer worked hard to promote RSS. The RSS 2.0 version supports enclosures also. Podcasts are nothing but application of these enclosures to audio files.

Beginning Podcasting is not very difficult. All you need to do is to record your audio in MP3 Format. To describe about your subject create a text file known as RSS 2.0. Finally, you need to upload these files to Internet.